Judy Alduenda and The Art ofDecorative Painting

Judy Alduenda with dog “Cedar.” Photo by Laura Calverley

By Laura Calverley

Local artist Judy Alduenda is passionate about painting — tole painting.

The decorative art uses specific strokes and techniques to color a line design or drawing. A tole painter can use many mediums — oils, watercolor and acrylic paints — and paints on many surfaces, including wood, fabric, metal, glass and more. Alduenda specializes in acrylic paints because they are safer to work with.

“ ‘Tole’ means ‘painting on tin’ in French,” Alduenda explained. “There are hundreds of different applications — tin and wood, which are both used a lot; canvas, and even gourds. Placemats and table runners can be made from the canvas. Many pieces are made of wood, from seasonal wall and door hangings to decorative boxes and cabinets.”

Alduenda, who has painted for 19 years, enjoys teaching her craft to others. For 13 years, she has taught five classes a week, Monday through Thursday, in a home studio

in Ramona called “The Tole Folks.” Beginner classes are offered only twice a year, in spring and fall. The next beginner class starts Sept. 14.

“There are some basic skills that beginners need to learn first to begin decorative painting, including how to prepare a surface, painting strokes, and painting techniques,” Alduenda said. “I start from scratch and teach all the basics.”

She said interested students don’t need any special skills, “just an interest in art or painting and doing something artistic.”

Classes at The Tole Folks run three hours, usually from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m., and each consists of about eight to 12 students. There is one morning class, on Thursday.

Her current class project is a large white gourd painted to look like a ghost, with a jack-o-lantern smile and a small, flat nose protruding from the face. It is an ideal Halloween decoration for any home.

Students who take Alduenda’s 12-week beginning class don’t just learn basic skills of decorative painting. Each takes home a finished project and a photo of the finished work.

“In my continuing classes, we work on one project and then I retire it,” Alduenda said. “I don’t teach it again. I want to give each of my students something that is exclusive — something unique to them.”

The walls at The Tole Folks studio are covered with wonderful examples of her works, from a wooden Santa Claus face to a window piece with whimsical pictures representing the four seasons.

“In fine art, you do your own line drawings, and in tole painting, you start with a ready-made line drawing,” she said, “and it’s the techniques and color you use that enhance the drawing and bring it to life.”

Projects can be simple or very elaborate. incorporating many colors, stencils and techniques to “antique” the work or give it an aged look. A project may take two weeks or 10 weeks or more to complete, depending on its difficulty.

Alduenda’s favorite project is a wooden mirror frame that is exquisitely decorated. It’s also the piece she spent the most time on, more than 350 hours. It hangs in her living room along with many other examples of her work.

Alduenda always has a booth at the “Seasons of the Heart” craft show in Ramona, but she only sets up an informational display because she doesn’t sell her work. She could not charge the prices for the work that the time involved demands, so she mostly gives away her work to family and friends.

Alduenda, who painted since college, began her teaching career at a Ramona store called Buckles and Bows. After it went out of business, her classes were still in demand, so she opened her home studio. The Tole Folks is one of only a few decorative painting home studios in San Diego County.

“One of the differences between fine art and decorative painting is that you need to stand back when you look at fine art to appreciate it,” Alduenda said. “With decorative painting, you have to get close up to see all the detail and appreciate the time and effort that has gone into it.”

Alduenda’s professional studio includes a long work table for students, with her desk at the far end. It is equipped with a remote television system and camera, so while she works on a project at her desk, it can be seen in two television monitors on the walls on either side of the table. The system also allows her to zoom in and out on the details of the work.

She admits that it is difficult to master decorative painting

in one 12-week class. Some students have taken her classes for years. Ninety-nine percent of her students are women, age 25 to 85.

“I still have two students from my original class at Buckles and Bows,” she said.

“This is a passion with me,” she added. “I want to teach as many people as possible, because once you learn how to do it properly, it’s something you know for life.”

For more information on taking a decorative painting class at The Tole Folks, call (760) 789-2660, and Alduenda will send you a flier.